Visa trafficking: six properties acquired in Algiers between 2016 and 2021
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Algérie 360
Spanish investigators say they have identified at least six properties acquired in Algiers between 2016 and 2021, for a total of 120 million dinars, in an investigation into alleged visa trafficking at the Spanish consulate. The findings are contained in a police report sent to judge María Tardón, according to The Objective.
Spanish police investigators say they have documentary evidence concerning at least six properties acquired in Algiers between 2016 and 2021, for a total of 120 million dinars, equivalent to around 783,919 euros at the rate used by the police. The findings are contained in a report by the Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit sent to investigating judge María Tardón, according to Algérie 360, which cites a document obtained by Madrid-based media outlet The Objective.
Police believe that the acquisitions being spread over five years could indicate that the alleged fraudulent practices date back at least a decade. The report also mentions properties that former Spanish chancellor Vicente Moreno and his wife allegedly own in Portugal, as well as the latter's time at the BLS company when her husband joined Algiers in 2007 as head of the visa service.
The case concerns six people, including the former chancellor, his wife, local agent Mohamed Boutouchent, Maua B., secretary to consul general Gauden Villas, as well as Hocine M. and Lylia D., who were assigned to process visa applications. The former chancellor's wife, Amina Nessrine Beljoudi, disputed the police findings by making them public, according to Algérie 360.
The investigation into the property assets follows the alleged purchase of 120 million dinars' worth of property in Algiers by the wife of a former Spanish chancellor, published on 9 November 2026. Suspicions of money laundering had already been raised after the Spanish foreign minister ordered the diplomat's repatriation to Madrid.
